1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a portable communication device, and particularly to a device employing an automatic calling method for calling in which the user making a call using a memory dial function need not be concerned as to whether the call is a domestic or international call, and the automatic calling method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Communication devices, such as portable telephone devices and portable information terminals having a telephone communication function, generally have a memory dial function. A memory dial function is a function for storing and retrieving a name and telephone number of a communication destination party from an internal memory, which is referred to as an electronic telephone book or an address book, to allow the user making a call using a memory dial function to complete a call by merely selecting the name of a party he wishes to call from the name list shown on the LCD of a portable telephone device. The user does not need to actually dial the number.
Here, since there is no uniform communication format usable for worldwide radio telephone systems, a portable telephone device for use, for example, in Japan may not be used as is in the United States, where a different communication format is adopted. However, telephone devices employing an exchangeable RF (radio frequency) module for attachment to the device body have recently been considered. The body of such a telephone device for use, for example, in Japan can also be used in the U.S. by simply exchanging of its RF module with the one for use in the U.S. Also integrated portable telephone devices incorporating a plurality of radio technologies are now available. In addition, it is expected that portable telephone devices usable in two or more countries will be realized when W-CDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) and other global standard formats for next generation portable telephone devices are put into a practicable use.
When the main body of a certain telephone device becomes usable in two or more countries, address data stored in the internal memory of the device body will be usable in Japan and in other countries.
However, for a portable telephone device having an exchangeable RF module, even if the body of a portable telephone device for use, for example, in Japan is usable in the U.S. after RF modules of, are exchanged, the exchanging is not enough to make the memory dial function of the device effectively usable in the U.S. That is, it is generally the case that a telephone number registered in the address book of a portable telephone device for use in Japan is the sequence required to make a call from one party in Japan to another party (Mr. A) in Japan (i.e., a number generally beginning with “0”). Therefore, conventionally, a person in the U.S. cannot make a call to Mr. A in Japan using a memory dial function of that portable telephone device because the registered telephone number for establishing a domestic telephone circuit connection with a party in the same country where the user is present does not include the digits necessary for making an international call, i.e., an international access code for specifying an international telephone company and a country code of the communication destination party. Therefore, dialing a telephone number registered in the internal memory does not achieve a telephone call from a party in the U.S. to a party in Japan. In light of this, an unfulfilled desire for users is the ability to make a call using a memory dial function without having to concern themselves as to whether the dialed party is then in them same country where the user is then present.
It is also highly desired that a user be able to use a memory dial function without concern as to whether or not a communication destination party is in or out of the country where the user is then present, particularly as it is expected that it will soon be possible to place domestic and internationals calls from anywhere in the world using the same portable telephone device due to improvement of portable telephone devices and adoption of uniform global radio telephone communication standards.